All Eyes on Des Moines

Disappointed at the news Eugene will be hosting the 2016 Olympic trials, Iowa officials move forward with the Drake Relays.

Des Moines residents welcomed the opening of the 104th Drake Relays on Tuesday evening, as the Grand Blue Mile in downtown Des Moines kicked off the six-day run of “America’s Athletic Classic” in Iowa’s Capital city. It could hardly be better timing, as many Central Iowans are still adjusting to the recent news that Eugene, Ore., and not Des Moines, will host the 2016 Olympic track trials.

The Grand Blue Mile also served as the USA 1 Mile Road Championships. Kate Grace was the women’s winner in 4:43.02 and set a course record. Sara Hall was second in 4:43.61, and 2012 winner Heather Kampf finished third in 4:43.69. On the men’s side, Garrett Heath also established a new men’s standard, as the Stanford alumnus ran 4:02.79 to edge Jeff See (4:02.91), with 2012 Olympic silver medalist Leo Manzano third. Several thousand recreational runners also took to the streets for Tuesday evening’s mile races as anticipation builds for Friday and Saturday’s marquee track events at Drake Stadium.

An article in the May issue of Running Times detailed Des Moines officials’ plans to use the Drake Relays as the centerpiece in their bid to host the 2016 Olympic trials. But on April 11, USATF announced that Eugene would be the 2016 host, a decision that took many Iowans aback, in part because there was little expectation that a trials venue decision was forthcoming this spring. (When asked on Feb. 27 about plans for site selection, USATF Chief Public Affairs Officer Jill Geer responded, “We don’t have a timeline.”)

But while disappointment lingers in Des Moines, optimism for the future far outweighs negative feelings. “I think people were a little bit surprised that the announcement came when it did,” said Steve Bobenhouse, co-owner of the Fitness Sports running shop in Des Moines. “But everybody realizes it’s tough to compete with Eugene. We also knew we had a limitation in not having a true, first-class warm-up facility. I know Drake has been working on that and I expect it will be there by 2020.”

If there was any dissatisfaction with USATF’s selection process, Des Moines officials have done an admirable job of hiding it. ”USATF had been upfront and forthcoming and we had good conversations with them leading up to [the announcement],” explained Mark Kostek, sport event manager with the Des Moines Convention & Visitors Bureau. “We were in discussions with them for a number of months. And while we’re disappointed, at the same time USATF has agreed to partner with us to help us improve and get the things done we need to, to perhaps be the successful bidder for 2020. So the momentum we’ve built will continue. Vin Lananna and his team have done a spectacular job [in Eugene] and we’ve got a mountain to climb in order to compete with them, but we’re willing to take those steps.”

A primary reason behind the bright outlook is the new and unprecedented three-year Drake Relays sponsorship by Hy-Vee, Inc., a West Des Moines-based supermarket chain. As a result, the Relays have attracted 25 medalists from the 2012 Olympics and will offer more than half a million dollars in prize money for selected track & field events and four accompanying road races (the Grand Blue Mile, plus 6K, 8K and half-marathon events).

“The whole Hy-Vee deal has been such a surprise, a great thing for the community and for track and field here,” Bobenhouse says. “Everybody is so excited about that. And having our street mile declared the national championship is also just great. We’ve had a half-marathon and 8K in recent years and we always opened up to some of the collegiate athletes and had good fields. Now it’s a half with a 10K and a 6K. It’s going to be a big week and the weather forecast for the weekend it looking pretty good.”

The Drake Relays are just the start of an exciting summer for Des Moines. In two months, from June 20-23, the USA Outdoor track and field championships return to Drake Stadium, another chance for Des Moines residents to showcase their city.